


The Last Of Us | maskimoo

by maskimoo



Category: The Last of Us
Genre: Arguing, Bloaters, Blood, Cute, F/F, F/M, Fluff, Gore, Harsh, Joel (The Last of Us) - Freeform, M/M, Major Character Injury, Problems, Runners, TriggerWarning, Yelling, Zombies, cannibals, clickers, mature - Freeform, nosmut, pushing people away
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-01
Updated: 2018-04-01
Packaged: 2019-04-16 19:21:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 5,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14171763
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maskimoo/pseuds/maskimoo
Summary: Joel, a middle aged guy who is a smuggler, is given a job along with his close colleague Tess, by the Leader of the fireflies to deliver immune twins, Ellie and Leo. What happens along their journey?





	1. Prologue

Leo's POV  
I opened my eyes slowly, Ellie waking me from my sleep. "C'mon dude. Marlene left a few hours ago." She whined, shaking me awake. I blinked away the sleep. "I'm awake, I'm awake." I mumbled. I sat up and Ellie stuck her tongue out as she fixed my hair. My red hair was relatively long, but I was hoping someone can cut it for me soon.  
I booped my sisters nose and got up. "How long have she been gone now?" I asked her, seeing the bright outside through the window. "Um, I think 4 hours. Maybe 6." She replied softly. I nodded in reply. "Leo, are you okay? You've been a bit.. unresponsive. Did.. did something happen when we were separated?" Ellie asked me softly. I tensed.  
I forgot she didn't know I was bitten before her... And we're both immune.


	2. Part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joel and Tess meet the twins.

Leo's POV  
I bit my lip in thought. "Nothing happened. Just upset about being alone." I partially lied. I always hated being alone. "I'm really sorry for that. I don't know why Marlene did that. Probably thought we would kill everyone." Ellie mumbled.  
"Okay okay, I'm lying." I blurted out. Ellie looked at me. "I..I got bit maybe a month ago." I said shakily, lifting my shirt. There was a bite on my side that looked like it was healing. "Wait.. So you aren't.. infected?" She said cautiously.  
I nodded. She sighed in relief. I put my shirt down. "When we were with Riley.. Remember when she was avoiding me?" I said softly to Ellie, knowing the subject was still sensitive for both of us. Ellie nodded. "She knew I was bitten." I told Ellie. She looked at me. "Wait, she did? Is that why she chuckled 'Guess Leo won't turn out to be like me after all' after she was bitten?" Ellie asked me, her voice going quieter by the second.  
I nodded. I wanted to change the subject so I did. "Want some food? I got some." I said, pointing to my bag. Ellie nodded. I crawled over to my bag. I grabbed some canned peaches. I crawled back to her and sat next to her. I opened it by digging my knife into the side of the lid, denting it. I ripped out the lid to reveal the peaches. I handed her the can. "Be slow with it or you'll choke," I warned as I did the same for my can. "I know." Ellie chuckled. She lifted the can to her mouth and ate some peaches and the juice. We finished it and I put the empty cans in my backpack. I use them for target practice. Suddenly, the door opened and Marlene stumbled in. "Whoa whoa whoa.." A deep voice said, going to her. I pulled out my combat knife. "C'mon now. Get on up."  
"Get the fuck away from her-!" I growled as a woman rushed in and grabbed my wrist and Ellie's who was holding her wrist. "Hey hey hey!" The woman said as I struggled to get to her. "Let them go." Marlene said, getting up. The woman let go. She was relatively young. Maybe in her late 20's or mid 30's. "You're recruitin' kind of young, aren't ya?" The male, looking at Marlene. "They aren't any of mine." Marlene said softly as we approached her. I put my knife away and saw her holding her side. "Aw, shit." I said as I put my hand on her arm.  
"What happened?" Ellie asked, worried as we helped her lean on the counter. "Don't worry. This is fixable." Marlene tried to assure us. "I got us help." Her head made a motion to the kind of old man and the young woman. The male looked about in his 40's. Ellie and I glanced at the two. We turned back to Marlene. "But I can't come with you." She said breathlessly. My stomach dropped. "Well, then we're staying," I demanded softly. Ellie nodded in agreement. "Leo, we won't get another shot at this." Marlene told me. "Hey - we're smuggling twins?" The man said, referring to us. Our heads turned to the man. "There's a crew of fireflies that'll meet you at the capital building." Marlene explained.  
I turned back to Marlene; so did Ellie. "That's not exactly close." The woman spoke up. "You're capable." Marlene said, irritated. "You hand her off, you come back, and the weapons are yours... DOUBLE of what Robert sold me."  
"Speaking of which - where are they?" The woman asked. "Back in our camp." Marlene responded. The man huffed. The woman turned her head to the man who folded his arms. The woman faced Marlene again. "We're not smuggling shit until I see them." The woman decided. "You'll follow me. You can verify the weapons, I can get patched up.." Marlene trailed off. "..But these two are NOT crossing that part of town."   
Wait.. does Marlene know I was bitten. I tapped my bite mark and Marlene nodded without them noticing. "I want Joel to watch over these two." So Joel is the guys name.. What's the girls?  
"Whoa whoa, I don't think that the best idea." "Bullshit! We're not going with him!"  
"Leo, Ellie.." Marlene said, interrupting Joel and us. I huffed. "How do you know them?" I demanded information. "I was close with his brother, Tommy." Marlene told us. "Said if I was ever in a jam, I could rely on him."  
"Was that before or after he left your little militia group?" Joel said roughly. "He left you too." Marlene reminded him. 'Ouch.. Roasted!' I thought childishly. "He was a good man." Marlene said. "Look, just take them to the north tunnel and wait for me there." The woman said to Joel. "Jesus Christ.." Joel mumbled. "They're just cargo, Joel.." The woman said.  
"Marlene.." "No more talking, Ellie." Marlene said softly. "You'll be fine. Now go with him, you two."  
"Don't take long, Tess." Joel said to Tess, the woman. "And you two - stay close."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> please leave comments if you read this book, ty!


	3. Part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joel and the twins get a soft moment and were almost caught.

Leo's POV  
"Let's go." Joel said as we glanced at Marlene. We then went behind Joel as he opened the door. I took off my ponytail from my wrist and put my hair into a man bun, since I didn't get scissors to cut my hair yet. I have black shoes on, jeans and a red flannel on. it was open and I had a black shirt under it. We exited the building and saw bodies everywhere. "Woah, I heard all the shooting, but.." I trailed off, looking around as well as following Joel. "What happened?"  
Joel picked up a firefly pendant. "The fireflies," He answered simply. "same things gonna happen to us if we don't get off the street." He warned us. "You're the pro. We're just following you." Ellie spoke. A woman on a speaker talked about helping 'criminals' was punishable by death, yadiyada. Oh please, the military is trying to say they're in control, But aren't we all being control by the infected?  
We followed Joel down some stairs into a small tunnel. "Down here." He said to us. I jogged behind Ellie to catch up. Joel was faster than us as he walked up some stairs. "C'mon. Keep up." He told us. "We are." I mumbled as the woman on the speaker repeated her message. We all crouched as military trucks passed us. As soon as they passed us, we walking through an open gated well.. gate. "Where are we going?" Ellie questioned Joel. "Up there. That'll get us to the north tunnel." Joel said, pointing to a balcony thingy. "How are we supposed to reach that??' Ellie asked.  
"Just gimme a minute." Joel mumbled. A few seconds later, he dragged over a dumpster. He climbed on top of it, climbing onto the balcony thingy. It was metal and it had a staircase. I let Ellie climb first then I did. We jogged up the staircase. He entered an open door. "This tunnel; you use it to smuggle things?" I asked, looking around as we entered, close behind Joel.   
"Yep." Joel replied. "Liiike, illegal things?" Ellie asked, curious. "Sometimes." Joel said. "You ever smuggle kids before?" I asked. "No. That's a first." He said as he looked over his shoulder. I avoided his eyes. He looked back in front of him as we walked down the hallway. A lot of the doors were secured with military lock things.  
"So, what's the deal with you two and Marlene anyways?" He asked us, his accent heavy. "I don't know. She's our friend, I guess." Ellie told him, turning her head to look out the windows. "Your friend, huh? You're friends with the leader of the Fireflies. What're you guys, like twelve?" He questioned. "She knew our mom and she's been looking after us. And we're fourteen, not like that has to do with anything." I replied as we started to walk up yet another set of stairs.  
"So, where are your parents?" He asked us. I bit my lip before answering. "Where are anyone's parents? They've been gone for a long, long time." I replied softly. I glanced at my broken wristwatch. "Hm. So just instead of staying in school, you just decide to run off and join the Fireflies, is that it?" Joel said. We entered another corridor and made a turn. "Look, I'm not supposed to tell you why you're smuggling us if that's what you're getting at." Ellie told Joel.  
"Wanna know what the best thing about my job is? I don't gotta know why. Be honest with you two, I could give two shits about what you're up to." Joel told us, looking over his shoulder. I avoided his eyes. Again. "Well, great." Ellie said. "Good." Joel spoke before entering a door that didn't have the military lock thingy.  
It was dark outside. "This is it." Joel said, letting us enter the room. He shut the door behind us. Joel laid down on the couch. "What are you doing?" Ellie asked him. "Killing time." He said simply. His watch my broken. I subconsciously glanced at mine. "Well, what are we supposed to do?" Ellie asked, looking around.   
"I am sure you will figure that out." Joel mumbled. Ellie walked slowly, glancing at Joel's watch.  
"Your watch is broken." She told him. He made a noise, like a pfft or something. I sat in the chair next to Ellie and I slowly fell asleep into my unknowing nightmare.  
time skip  
Suddenly, I woke up, jolting off of Ellie's shoulder. I noticed Joel also just woke up. I sigh of relief. "You both mumble in your sleep." Ellie told us as Joel sat up. "I hate bad dreams."  
"Yeah, me too." Joel said as he rubbed his face. We looked back at him. "Y'know, we've never been this close... to the outside." I said softly. "Look how dark it is," Ellie said. Joel turned on a lantern. "Can't be any worse out there.." I said, looking at Joel. I got up. "..can it?"  
"What on earth do the fireflies want with you two?" Joel demanded. Then suddenly, Tess ran through the door and shut it. "Hey. Sorry it took so long. Soldier's fuckin' everywhere." She spoke. "How's Marlene?" Ellie asked, worried. "She'll make it." Tess assured us. "I saw the merchandise. It's a lot." Tess confirmed, turning to Joel. "Wanna do this?"  
"Yeah." Joel replied roughly. "Let's go." Tess said, opening another door. I followed behind Ellie who was behind Joel. Tess walked to the window, which it was even more dark outside but this time it was raining. "Don't you think it's a bit strange they're having us doin' their smugglin'?" Joel asked Tess. "Marlene wanted to do it herself. We weren't her first choice, or her second for that matter." Tess told him. "She's lost a lot of men. Beggars can't be choosers."  
"Yeah, let's just hope there's someone alive to pay us." Joel grumbled as Tess walked away from the window. "Someone'll be around." Tess informed Joel, walking to a bookcase which had a book I was looking for all over. I grabbed it and put it in my bag before they moved the bookcase out of the way of a hole in the wall. "C'mon." Tess said to us, going through the hole, then Ellie, then me, then Joel.  
Tess led us to a small platform next to a hand generator. Joel yanked it 3 times before it started. It started up, very loud. He got on the platform, pressing the button. He turned to Tess. "Who's waitin' for us at the drop off?" He asked. "She said there's some fireflies that traveled here all the way from another city. Twins must be important." Tess said, looking at us. "What is the deal with you two? You guys some big-wig's son and daughter or something?" Tess raised an eyebrow.  
"Something like that." Ellie responded, the platform stopping and us getting off. It was dark, but an exception was a small tunnel with a red light. "How long is this gonna take?" I asked. "If everything goes as planned, we should get you two there in a few hours." Tess responded. "Ellie, Leo, once we get out there, you guys need to stay close." She told us as Joel was on the other side already as we crawled through it.  
"Yeah, of course." Ellie told her. I made a noise of agreement. We arrived to a room with a ladder in it. Joel quickly climbed up the ladder and removed the plate that covered the hole and check for soldiers. "Now, hold up. There's a patrol up ahead." Joel murmured to us. After a minute or two, he spoke. "Alright you three. C'mon up, it's safe now." He climbed up the rest of the ladder. We hurried and got out before joel covered the hole again.


	4. Part 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joel and Tess find out the twins' secret.

Leo's POV

Tess, Ellie and I went under a plank as Joel covered the hole. He crouched under it and crawled out under it. "This rain ain't gonna do us any good." Joel observed, catching up as we started to walk. "Holy shit.. we're actually outside!" I said to Ellie, admiring the rain puddles. Of it course it rained in the zones, but it was some how prettier without soldiers harassing you for an ID 24/7.  
We were walking through a puddle as we approached the back of a truck's thing that carries stuff. We crawled into it and got on our feet. "Up this way," Joel ushered us. He looked around and was suddenly hit by the barrel of a gun. "Don't anything stupid." Soldier #1 said, pointing their flashlight and gun at me. I put my hands in the air. "Move." Soldier #2 ordered Tess as Ellie and I jumped down, getting on our knees along with Joel. "Scan 'em, I'll call it in." Soldier #1 said.   
He pulled out the infected scanner thing. I got anxious when he pulled out a second one. He scanned Joel and Tess, and then us. "Sorry!" I said quickly as I stabbed the guys knee. I took his wrist and bent it in a weird way. Ellie quickly stabbed the other in the stomach and Tess and Joel finished them off. I fell on my butt, scooching so my back touched a hard surface. Ellie was next to me. "Oh fuck!" I said, dropping my combat knife.  
"I thought we were just gonna hold em up or something..." Ellie said. Tess grabbed the scanners. Her eyebrows furrowed as my stomach dropped. "Oh shit.." Tess said. "Look," She said as she tossed the scanners. Joel looked at them. "Jesus Christ.." He growled, glancing at us. He looked back at Tess. "Marlene set us up!?" Joel demanded answers. They turned to us. "Why the hell are we smugglin' infected twins?"  
I shook my head. "We're not infected." I denied. "No? Then was this lyin'?" He growled, tossing us the scanners on the ground. We glanced at them.  
'INFECTED' flashed on the scanner in red. I looked back at them. "We can explain!" Ellie told them. "You better explain fast." Tess growled. Ellie rolled up her sleeve and I sat up more and lifted my shirt. We revealed our healing bite marks. "Look at this! Mine is 3 weeks!" Ellie told them. "I was bitten a month ago! I swear!" I informed them. "No, everyone turns within two days, so you two stop bullshitting." Tess demanded. "It's three weeks!" "It's a month!" "I swear."   
"Why would she set you up?" I asked. They glanced at each other. "I ain't buying it." Joel growled. Tess and Joel were looking out. "Oh shit." Joel whispered as military trucks arrived. I stood up. "RUN, RUN! MOVE MOVE!" Tess shouted.   
TIME SKIP, AFTER THE POLICE SCENE  
We were in a safe place finally. "Joel, see if there's anything useful around here." Tess said. "Sure thing, boss." Joel joked, yet you could not tell he was. He collected things he could build with and I found a few cans so I took them.  
Joel found an exit. "Tess, up through here. In this pipe." He called. We jogged up the small hill to the big pipes. "I think we can make it through here." He told us, splashing sounds as we walked in water that went up to our ankles. "Stay very close, guys." Tess told us. We walked into deeper water, it went up to our waists. We stuck to the wall. Joel flinched as military trucks drove by . "Whoa whoa, whoa. Hang on, hang on." He whispered to us. We heard the skid sounds of a truck suddenly stopping and it's wheels dragging. "Jesus." Joel whispered, almost to the other side of the pipe.  
"Gather up. They're calling us back. We're returning to the wall!" Soldier #1 spoke to the others, which we couldn't see. We stepped up into the next pipe, the water to our ankles again. "You heard the man. Load Them up. Let's go, let's go!" #2 said.  
"Come on." He whispered to us, walking cautiously to a metal gate, blocking our exit. He pushed the creaky gate open as the soldiers left. I sat down next to Ellie. They looked at the road. "Alright. They're gone." Joel announced to us. Tess bent down to us. "Look - what was the plan? Let's say we deliver you two to the Fireflies; what then?" Tess asked us. "Marlene.. She said that they had their own little quarantine zone with doctors there, still trying to find a cure." Ellie explains, out of breath.  
"Yeah we heard that before, huh, Tess?" Joel said. "And that.." Ellie continued. "..whatever happened to us is the key in finding the vaccine."  
"Oh Jesus.." Joel said, not believing a word. "It's what she said." I spoke, defending Ellie. "Oh, I'm sure she did." Joel said. "Hey, fuck you man! I didn't ask for this!" I growled, standing up. "Me neither," Joel said, getting close to Tess. "Tess, what the hell are we doin' here?" He asked her quietly as she stood up. Ellie stood at my side.  
"What if it's true?" Tess questioned. Joel blinked in surprise and huffed. "I can't believ-" "What if, Joel? I mean, we've come this far; let's just finish it."  
Joel yanked Tess to his side, pointing to the crumbling buildings of the city. "Do I need to remind you, of what out there?" He whispered harshly. They glanced at us, then back at each other. "I get it." Tess said simply, her brows furrowing. Tess walked past him and we followed her, glancing at Joel.


	5. Part 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They continue on their journey and Joel is almost bit.

LEO'S POV  
"This way," Tess said, leading the way. We followed and a little of distance behind me, Joel was too. "If we cut through downtown, we can hit the capitol building by sunrise." Tess said, walking. "We hope." Joel muttered. We walked in water that was almost to our knees and we jumped over a car. We got onto crumbled highway roads and climbed on them to get into downtown... I think that is what Tess called it. Back in the zone, we just called it the city.  
"Holy moley," Ellie started, looking at the broken buildings. "I guess this is what these buildings look like up close." I looked up and I saw a building leaning on another building. "They're so damn tall." I observed.   
"So what happened here?" I asked, referring to the wreckage. "They bombed the hell out of the surrounding areas to the quarantine zones, hoping to kill as much of the infected as possible." Tess explained to us. "It worked - for a while." She continued. I heard a disturbing sound. "UUhh, what in the hell was that?" I asked right after, shuffling to Joel. "Tess, do you hear that?' Joel asked Tess as Joel made us go in front of him, behind Tess. "Yeah. Sounded pretty far away, though." Tess told Joel, stopping in her tracks to talk. "Shit." Joel muttered as we continued to walk in the rain. It seemed like vegetation claimed back it's land in the city. Is that how people become infected besides bites? It's a fungus, right?  
"Are we safe?" Ellie asked. "For now," Tess replied. "Come on." Tess was ahead of us. We walked up a small hill thing to a cliff thingy. "Damn. That's quite a drop." Ellie commented. Joel found a spot to get around the cliff thingy. We crouched and crawled through a space to a nicer space. We followed Joel who jumped up into a broken window of a building. That must be the way. We looked in drawers for supplies in that room. The building was tilted, so the doorways were too. Joel walked to a door and opened it. Rats screeched and scurried by. We entered an open door into a hallway.  
In front of us was a soldier which was ripped apart. "He's been ripped apart..." Tess observed. "Yeah.." Joel breathed out. "Body's pretty fresh." Tess observed again. "Is that bad..?" Ellie asked. I slapped her arm. "Obviously! The fireflies couldn't have done that, and what soldier's would turn on each other?" I said softly. Ellie thought about it. "Makes sense." She replied. We almost fell off another collapsed part, but we didn't. We looked down to see moss and a long, long drop. We walked into a small part that had a door and a staircase. We went the stairs to see another ripped apart soldier. "Another one. Shit." Tess said softly. Joel picked up the ammo beside him and the letter.  
At the bottom, it had blood on it. It was a patrol report. "Looks like these guys died waiting for backup." Joel said. We went up the rest of the staircase. There was nothing except duct tape and scissors. Joel picked those up and we went back down the stairs to a part where there was a door which we went through to see a really, really really, really infected person. Fungus growing out their head.  
"Goddammit. Clicker." Joel muttered. It looked like the head was stuck to the doorknob and the outline of the door. "Geez.. what's wrong with it's face?" I asked, looking at it. "That's what years of infection will do to you." Tess explained as Joel gripped it's shoulders, pulling. "So, what are they.. blind?" Ellie asked. "Sort of. They see using sound." Tess told us.  
"Like bats?" I said. "Like bats. If you hear one clicking, you gotta hide. That's how they spot you." Tess told us. Joel used his strength to pull the person off and pushed him to the side. Joel pushed on the door with his shoulder. With the third whack, he got in. It was a room with a lot of file cabinets. Joel turned on his flashlight, as well as Tess. We entered and scavenged anything useful. As we did, the building shook. "Shit." I said, startled. "Whole building feels like its gonna fall apart." Joel mumbled. We crouched and went under a toppled over thing. "Watch your head." Joel warned as we went under it.  
We vaulted over the table in the doorway into a office workspace which had a lot of drawers with nothing in them. The building shook again. "Totally cool! Everything is totally.. cool." Ellie said, startled and afraid the building will collapse. Joel tried to turn the doorknob on a door and it was stuck. He tried pushing on it with his shoulder. "Gimme a hand with this." Joel told Tess. They both pushed on it. It opened, a desk falling into the abyss. "JOEL!" Tess shouted, a clicker tackling Joel.


	6. Part 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They all run away from infected.

LEO'S POV  
My blood pumped as it tried to bite Joel but Tess kicked it over and shot it twice in the head. Joel was catching his breath. "Thanks.." He thanked Tess. "You alright?" Ellie asked. "It's nothin'." Joel replied softly. "Let's search for supplies." Tess told everyone. We all followed Tess. "Shit, aw that was intense!" I commented.  
"You said it," Tess murmured as we entered an office backroom which had cabinets and a old fridge.  
TIME SKIP  
There was a clicking noise. "Clickers?" I asked quickly. "Oh, shit. go go go." Tess hissed. We ran through a doorway and hid behind a counter with ellie, tess and joel. The clicker screeched and clicked and stumbled into the room. I quickly whip out a can and threw it across the road. It croaked and clicked and stumbled to the noise.   
TIME SKIP, AGAIN BECAUSE IM LAZY  
"The staitwells blocked. Should we go back up?" Ellie asked. "Ahh, this is crazy." Tess murmured as she vaulted onto one of those things people would go on to the clean windows of really tall buildings. I forgot it's name. It wobbled. "Just.. don't look down." Tess advised. We all got onto it, got off, scooched against the wall and got onto stable ground. We walked down yet another staircase, and into yet ANOTHER doorway. Joel found another gun which was a revolver. There were tons of infected, so Tess, Ellie and I hid as Joel offered to clear the area.  
ANOTHER TIME SKIP BECAUSE I'M AN ASSHOLE  
"Alright, come on down!" Joel called as the last infected dropped to the ground, dead. We came down. Tess whistled. "I'm impressed, Joel." She said.  
"Pssh.. let's just get outta here." Joel said, getting supplies and avoiding the comment. We crawled onto another floor and Joel pulled something heavy out of the way of a door. "Tess, go." He grunted. "I'm on it," Tess said, opening the door. We pushed something on the another side and Joel vaulted and got into the room. "That should do it." I murmured. We collected supplies that was in the room.  
ANOTHER TIME SKIP. IM AN ASSHOLE.  
"Holy shit.. we actually made it!" I exclaimed. "Everyone okay?" Joel asked because we just killed a fuckton of clickers and runners. "Yes. Let's move." Tess tells everyone, getting on the correct ground level. "You guys are pretty good at this stuff." Ellie observed. "It's called luck, and it's gonna run out." Joel grumbled. I looked up at the tall buildings. "Which way we goin', Tess?" Joel asked roughly. "Uhh, Capitol building's in this direction." Tess said. There was a building with a gold top and it looked like a dome. 110% sure that's the building they're talking about. We walked to a truck. "How do we get over this truck?" Ellie questioned. "Let's see what we can find." Tess said, looking around. Joel walked into a building with a hole in the side of it and infected screeched. "Leo, Ellie, stay back!" Tess yelled as one tackled Joel.  
Shots rang out as Joel and Tess shot them down. "Alright.." Joel huffed. "They're recently infected. Those soldier's must've just turned." Tess told Joel. "Which means there's more in the area. We gotta go." He grunted as he dragged a drawer thingy to the truck. "Alright." He panted, letting go. It must be heavier than it appears to be. Joel climbed onto the truck first. "Climb on up." He told us. We did as he told. We all jumped down, everyone letting a little grunt from the impact of the ground. We walked over a metal garage(?) door and there was a chain that you could pull to open it.   
It made noise as Joel grabbed it and began to pull it down. The door began to screech. "Shh-shh.." Tess whispered to Joel. He stopped pulling. "What? I don't hear anything." He replied. We heard yells of runners. "Okay, double time." Tess urged. "Shit." Joel hissed as he pulled down harder and faster. "They're coming," I warned. "I know!" Joel grunted. "Okay, that's good, that's good, go!" Tess said, urging us to crawl through the space. We did along with Tess. Tess held the door. "Okay, Joel!" Tess yelled. He quickly crawled under it. "Drop it!" He grunted. A runners' hand was sliced off, and onto their side.  
I flinched multiple times at the loud bangs of metal, everyone cautious and alert. "Oh.. you got something on your shoe." I commented. It was that runners' arm. "Huh?" Joel said, looking down. He shook it off. "Gross," Ellie commented. Turns out, I was correct it was a fairly large garage that had a broken down truck in it.  
"Okay, how do we get out of this place?" Joel asked.


	7. Part 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Museum scene, but changed up a bit.

Leo's POV  
"Let's find out." Tess said. Joel walked to a workbench to adjust his weapons with what he found.  
"So Marlene thinks you two are immune?" Tess asked quietly, but we all knew Joel could still hear us. "That's what she believes," Ellie said. Tess huffed out, her facing hinting mirth. "So, how were you two bitten? There's no infected in the zone." Tess said. "Yeah, I snuck out.." Ellie said. "We were in this... military boarding school."   
"And you sneak out?" Tess asked. "You know.. explore the city. I was in the mall when I ran into infected." Ellie confessed. "That place is completely off limits." Tess said, confused. "How'd the hell did you get in there?" She asked. "I.. had my ways. Anyways, one of those - what you guys call runners, bit me. And that was that." Ellie mumbled, not even mentioning Riley. I understand that. It was a sensitive subject. "I see." Tess started. She turned to me. "And you? How'd you get bit?" She asked.  
"The military boarding school had 2 sections. One was for the boys and the other, for the girls. Some crazy guy took me hostage and got me out of the zone, I managed to kill him with my punches but I had no idea where I was." I started to explain. "He had a gun and I took it, as seeing as I didn't have my trusty knife on me. I was in a office building, I think. I don't really know. Maybe a hotel. Anyway, turns out the guy was a hunter. The place was overrun with hunters and infected. I killed all the hunters but tons of infected ran after me. I shot them all but I missed a shot on one of those things you guys call clickers. It bit me and I shot it to death." I told everyone. "Wait, you brought a gun into the zone?" Ellie asked.   
I patted my back pocket. The gun was still there. I took it out of my pocket and it was stained with my blood. "Oh." Tess said. "I only use it if I'm in dire trouble or if people around me are." I said. Joel eyed the gun. I put it back in my back pocket. "Were either of you guys with Marlene when you were bitten?" Tess asked. "No. We went to her for help afterwards, but Ellie never knew I was bitten." I told her.  
"Knowing her, I'm surprised she didn't shoot either of you two." Tess said, impressed. "She almost did." Ellie spoke. "Hope she's alright." "I told you, she's gonna be fine." Tess assured us.  
Joel opened a door, leading to a room with ammo. I secretly took some and found some supplies. We went to another door and opened it and found more supplies. I found a savage starlight comic. "Ellie!" I said. She turned around. "What?"  
I handed her the comic. She never read the first one. "Sweet, dude I gotta let you read all of them once I'm done with them!" She exclaimed, smiling. We went through yet another door. There was a giant... bell? And it was toppled over. Yet, somehow a vase survived.. until Ellie bumped into it. "Ow, shit," She hissed. "Sorry, sorry! That was me."  
"Tess," Joel mumbled. "Sorry." Ellie said one last time. "C'mon, stay close to me." Tess said to both of us. Half of the second floors floor caved in so we walked up and climbed onto the second floor. "What is this place?" I asked. "It's an old museum. Some of these things are hundreds of years old." tess explained.  
"Really? Wow.." I said, looking at all the rubble. I saw some stuff that wasn't broken, thought. We crouched and walked to a crumbled part. "Alright, watch your head." Joel grunted as he lifted the piece. "Hurry, go, go!"   
Only Ellie and I managed to get through without it crumbling. "Shit!" I said. "Joel, Tess! You okay?" I asked through the other side. "Yeah, we're alright, you two?" Tess asked. "We're okay." Ellie replied. Clickers screeched, clicked and croaked. "Shit!" I said, taking out my gun. "Run!" Tess hissed. We followed her directions.

**Author's Note:**

> this is also on wattpad! my user is also maskimoo :)


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